A Midwinter's Nightmare
by Shananigans10
Summary: The war is over and the 'Golden Trio' has returned to Hogwarts to finish their final year. Hermione Granger stumbles across the dead body of one of their professor's and the Aurors bring their investigation to the castle, blaming the innocent instead of doing an actual investigation and going out of their way to put the murders on Hermione's boyfriend and former Death Eater, Draco.
1. Chapter 1

A/N- Response to a prompt for HP_Drizzle on Livejournal! Thanks to my beta, Nina, for rocking this out for me!

Title: A Midwinter's Nightmare

Author/Artist: Shananigans10

Prompt: #33 What was supposed to be a snowman lying flattened on the ground with the long carrot nose and the black beady eyes, turned out to be instead the dead body of a Hogwarts professor (Author can decide whose body it was!); a serial killer is at loose in Hogwarts this winter and the body count has just begun. A wintry murder mystery.

Any optional extras: Post war, Voldemort is dead, the Malfoy's fought on the side of the Order, Snape and Dumbledore are alive, Fred is alive, The Weasley twins should play an important role and should be among the suspects, the real serial killer should be a well-known unexpected Harry Potter character or characters. The lead pair should be among the counted suspects for some reason. New characters can be introduced. Feel free to take the story into darker territory but it should have a resolved and positive ending. Also no extreme descriptions of violence. Smutty moments are very welcome, but it is optional!

Pairing(s): Draco/Hermione

Word Count/Art Medium: 20,237

Rating: PG-13

Warning(s): Major character death, Minor character death

Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.

Summary: The war is over and the 'Golden Trio' has returned to Hogwarts to finish their final year. Hermione Granger stumbles across the dead body of one of their professor's and the Aurors bring their investigation to the castle, blaming the innocent instead of doing an actual investigation and going out of their way to put the murders on Hermione's boyfriend and former Death Eater, Draco Malfoy. Who is the real killer? Read to find out!

A Midwinter's Nightmare

 **Chapter One**

Hermione laughed aloud as she lobbed another snowball through the air, aiming directly for Fred Weasley's grinning face – he wasn't looking at her, he was busy throwing his own snowball at Harry Potter, who was whooping with glee and running in the opposite direction.

Hermione almost fell over laughing when her snowball hit Fred directly in the cheek, shocking him for a moment before he started chasing her. She giggled and turned on her heel, running directly for her boyfriend, Draco Malfoy, while waving her wand at the snow-covered ground and causing a handful of snowballs to start flinging backward over her head, accidentally attacking Neville instead of Fred – her aim was a little off since she wasn't looking. She charged at Draco and dived, taking him out at the knees and sending him toppling backward into a large snow pile that almost swallowed them whole.

Draco floundered for a moment, laughing, before pulling himself onto his knees, but then Harry ran by with a handful of loose powder, rubbing it into Draco's face as he passed and causing him to fall backward onto his arse.

A spluttering Draco managed to look indignant before pulling himself to his feet. He stood at a towering six foot four to Hermione's five foot nine and he was wiry and muscled, but not bulky by any means. His blond hair had darkened a little bit over the years, so it looked more natural and not so bleached. Draco had grown into his once pointy features and they had become a little less sharp over the last couple of years, making him incredibly handsome.

"I'll get him for you!" Hermione shouted, taking off at a run to stay warm. Snow had gotten caught in her scarf and, now melted, was sliding down her spine, causing her to shiver before taking off with Draco hot on her heels. Draco took a snowball in the arm, fired by Ron Weasley, and completely changed his course.

This was the first time that many of the group had seen Draco loosen up and have a bit of fun, laughing easily with the decent sized crowd. People had seen him with Harry, Ron and Hermione plenty of times but they'd never seen him display any positive emotion and look like he was actually having a good time – it was surprising and made him seem a little more human than people were accustomed to. The group was mostly Harry, Ron and Hermione's friends from Gryffindor. They didn't see too much of Draco Malfoy outside of meals in the Great Hall or the few classes they shared; they figured he must be a good guy to spend time with, considering the company he kept these days, but they'd never actually seen it with their own eyes.

It was the perfect day to be outside, sunny and mild considering it was the middle of winter. Christmas break had ended the day before and everyone wanted to enjoy some time together before getting back into the grind – the Weasley twins were visiting from their shop in Hogsmeade, as they did most weekends. As usual, they'd brought huge cardboard boxes, so overflowing with Weasley's Wizard Wheezes that fake wands and re-exploding parchments kept slipping over the edges. Draco had been begging her to use some of the parchments in class (say, for an exam), and while she was steadfast in her refusal, she had to admit she was impressed with the ingenuity of Fred and George's latest line of products: QuIllusions.

Hermione and the rest of her friends had collectively opted to attend their last year of schooling. It had been put on hold for two years because of the war, but the offer was there and they had all – even Ron – jumped at the opportunity to get their N.E. and be valid graduates from Hogwarts. The decision hadn't come lightly, as even without diplomas, they'd all had alluring options in the outside word. Harry, Ron and Hermione had all been offered positions as Aurors, Draco was to be chairman of Malfoy Industries and Neville had been offered a teaching position at their beloved school. Maybe they all wanted the opportunity to live carefree lives as students for a year, or maybe they just wanted to be able to spend another year together before they were to go off into their separate lives – whatever the reason they'd all decided to attend school as 'eighth years'.

Ginny, who had been offered a position on her favourite Quidditch team, the Holyhead Harpies, came back to finish her seventh year as well, as had Luna Lovegood and a few others. Even though they were technically a year younger than their friends, they had been deemed 'eighth years' as well because Hogwarts had been closed for two years. They all shared classes.

Unsurprisingly, Fred and George, who'd also been offered the chance to complete their degrees, chose to continue managing their lucrative business. Hermione couldn't understand why anyone would choose to remain technically and legally an unqualified wizard, but supposed it made sense in a way. Their memorable departure from Hogwarts hadn't been triggered by war the way hers and her friends' had, and so the end of the war didn't tempt them to return. Besides, they clearly didn't need diplomas in their job line – they were making loads of profits, much of which they'd donated to the foundation of the Phoenix Orphanage, created in memory of their fallen comrades, in close proximity to the Burrow, whose renovation they'd also facilitated. A delighted Molly Weasley had insisted on donating the land for the orphanage, so that she would be close enough to it to care for all the children. There was a staff, of course, but the big-hearted matriarch seemed to need children and their accompanying chaos in her life in order to be satisfied. Arthur, who had a brand new, larger-on-the-inside garage with plenty of Muggle inventions and tools, didn't seem to mind.

Hermione paid for her inattention as she was pounced on by Harry, who shoved her down before scooping up a handful of snow and rubbing it in her hair pointedly, laughing hard before jumping up and running away quickly. Hermione gasped in mock outrage, subsiding into giggles as she looked around for her boyfriend.

During their sixth year, in order to keep his parents alive, Draco had been tasked to murder Albus Dumbledore; that had been the straw that eventually broke the camel's back. He'd made a few failed attempts but when it came down to it he broke down and went to Dumbledore, confessing the plans that Voldemort had for him and that he just couldn't do it – he wasn't a cold-blooded killer. Dumbledore had whisked Draco and his parents (who were also serving the Dark Lord out of fear for their family) to an Order safe house. All three had insisted on joining the Order of the Phoenix, where they fought for two years and finally came out victorious.

Lucius, apparently, had been against the plan, but when faced with losing his wife and son by Voldemort's hand and their insistence that he join them in saving their family, he had to swallow his beaten down pride and follow them, turning his back on many of his old friends. It turned out that Lucius, once he'd made the decision, was a critical asset to the Order of the Phoenix; he'd brought along tons of insider information and could name more than two hundred Death Eaters off the top of his head.

The Order was obviously wary of the Malfoy family in the beginning, suspicious of allowing Lucius to help with battle plans and Draco to join raids. However, once their involvement had proven to bring no treachery or ill-effects, everything fell into place. This hadn't stopped George from replacing biscuits from the Malfoys' tea tray with Canary Creams one day, or Fred from giving Draco one of his punching telescopes (which he admitted might have been in poor taste), but overall the family had integrated well, if quietly and hesitantly, into the social structure of the Order. Hermione, Harry and Ron had once walked into the kitchen of Grimmauld place and saw Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy sitting at the table with Molly and Arthur Weasley, laughing heartily about something and sharing tea. Ron had dropped a mug of tea, which shattered on the floor, causing even more laughter as they all helped clean up the mess.

Draco had a harder time adjusting to life supporting the Order of the Phoenix. Embarrassment for the way he'd treated Harry Potter and his friends and his naturally quiet and reserved disposition had caused him to spend the first two weeks after his arrival avoiding everyone his age. That changed quickly though; Hermione bumped into Draco on the staircase inadvertently one night and instead of snarling at her, Draco apologized for the way he'd behaved in the past and told her he really did want to help them defeat Voldemort and his Death Eaters. They'd shared a rather intense conversation, probably the most Draco had ever spoken to anyone in his life, and Hermione ended it by informing Draco that if he'd apologize to Harry and Ron, who were incredibly forgiving people, that she was sure everything between all of them would work out fine.

It did.

Hermione and Draco started dating five months later, and she wasn't disappointed with her choice in the least. Harry and Ron followed Hermione's lead and, once Draco had apologized to them, they even became friends, spending time together without her too.

Harry was kind and forgiving, a natural leader who wanted to see the good in everyone. Ron had a quick temper, but he was still soft-hearted and wanted nothing more than to have friends, a wife, and children – something Hermione thought about every time she saw him share a look with Luna Lovegood – and Draco was… Draco. He was smart and witty but only spoke to anyone other than Hermione if it was absolutely necessary. Sometimes his sharp tongue would make an appearance when speaking to them but he was quick to make amends – he wanted actual friends, people who would allow him to be himself without getting their knickers in a twist; he'd found that his Gryffindor friends lived up to their house in school and were incredibly loyal to people once they'd accepted them into their lives.

It was almost like it had been meant to happen when they were eleven, but certain events caused it to take a little longer than fate had originally intended. Draco had turned his back on everything he'd known, and almost all of his Slytherin friends had died during the war. The few left alive didn't return to school, and Draco wasn't sure he'd want to see them, anyway.

He was a different person, now. His family was different, but in a good way. He'd grown up differently than his new friends and under entirely contrasting circumstances but he thought his family was coming along well. His mother was happier, lighter and smiled easier than he'd ever seen before. She'd reconciled with Andromeda Tonks a few months after their arrival to the Order, and she seemed more laid back and not so obsessed with what being a pureblood meant. His father had gained back his previous pride after they'd gotten out from Tom Riddle's thumb, but he wasn't as arrogant and conceited as he'd been when Draco was younger; his pureblood mania was left in the dust of their dungeons with Tom Riddle's ideals. All his parents wanted was to see their son graduate school, get a good job, marry a wonderful witch and have plenty of babies – they wanted to see him happy.

And lord, was he happy.

Hermione, her usual bushy hair pulled into a side braid except the wisps that were always breaking free, was running away from Harry as fast as she could, heading away from the gathered group of friends and cresting a hill. She let out a shout of glee when she got to the top and saw that there were dozens of snowmen built on the other side. She ran towards them, dodging through them and hiding behind them to avoid Harry, who was still chasing her like a madman, a handful of snow in his gloved hand.

She giggled as she ran, turning over her shoulder to shout to the bespectacled man that he was never going to catch her, when she tripped over a downed snowman. She was sprawled across it, the carrot inches from her own face when, suddenly, she pushed away from it in horror. The snow near the left eye of the snowman had broken away when her hand hit and the eye looked all too real – all too real and much too empty.

She screamed as she got her feet beneath her and backed away, her hands jumping up and pressing over her mouth in shock and fear.

"What is it?" Harry asked, rushing forward and bending over the snowman, brushing the snow away to reveal a very dead Professor Slughorn. Their professor's skin was pale and something in his throat was causing a large, unnatural bulge near his adam's apple and his neck was red and scratched as though he'd been clawing at it. Hermione screamed louder and in doing so gathered the attention of some of their friends, who were running over the crest of the hill toward them, worried.

"Someone get Dumbledore immediately!" Harry yelled to their approaching friends, then proceeded to stand guard over the body, keeping the group as far away as he could, as Ron ran back to the school. Harry wanted to be an Auror when he completed school; he already knew some of the protocol – keeping the crime scene as undisturbed as possible was one of the first things to do.

Everyone stood around in silence as they waited for their Headmaster to show up, shocked and sickened by what Hermione had discovered; even the twins weren't able to make a joke. Draco had pulled her into his arms the second he reached her side and turned her face away from their dead teacher, trying to shield her from more tragedy. She'd lost her parents a year after they had begun dating while the war was in full swing and he didn't think he could ever do with seeing her so hurt again – it had taken her months to start acting normal again, and while he knew she'd always missed them he was glad that she was back to acting like herself again.

Dumbledore appeared after a few minutes and firmly directed everyone to the Great Hall after sending out two Patronuses – one to the castle and one that went in the complete opposite direction, probably to the Auror headquarters at the Ministry.

"The Aurors will want to question all of you once they've started their investigation. Even you, Fred, George, so please go up to the castle where Professor McGonagall is waiting."

"Question us?" Hermione asked, her hand clenched in Draco's as they trudged back to the school. "We haven't done anything wrong!"

"We're upstanding citizens!" The twins shouted in unison. "War heroes," Fred said, followed by George saying, "Close friends of 'the Chosen One'". Ron, standing close to them, elbowed Fred, and the twins grinned, if a bit weakly.

"Come on, Ron," said George. "Acting all mopey won't make anyone feel better. Besides, old Sluggy wouldn't want it."

Fred chimed in, "Yeah, always liked a good party, didn't he?" Hermione glared at him, and he forbore mentioning that the house-elves would probably be glad to make them all Slughorn's favorite ice cream sundaes. Perhaps it was a bit too soon.

"They'll just want to know how we found the body," Harry assured Hermione as they ignored the twins and ascended the stone staircase to the double doors. "It's protocol."

"I can't believe Slughorn's dead," Ron moaned from Draco's side. "How could this have happened? What does it mean? I thought the war was over."

"This doesn't necessarily have anything to do with the war, Ron," Hermione admonished immediately, annoyed that he'd jump to that conclusion. Draco held the door open for her and she pushed through, chafing her hands together to try and warm them up. "I'm sure it was a one-time thing that the Auror's will figure out. We all know that Slughorn hung around with some shady characters, always looking for deals and contacts and ways to make money."

"That isn't an appropriate way to speak about someone who was just found murdered, Miss Granger," Professor McGonagall admonished from in front of her.

"I'm sorry, Professor," Hermione said immediately, bowing her head.

"I understand that you and a group of friends were the ones to find Professor Slughorn's body. You'll each have to be put into separate rooms until the Aurors are satisfied that they have determined what has happened and settled things according to all the legalities."

"Determined what happened? Legalities?" Hermione squeaked, unable to avoid the feeling that blame was going to be pushed onto her and her friends. McGonagall ushered her into a room quickly. Draco dropped her hand, giving her a small, secret smile that wasn't meant for anyone else to even see.

"A professor of this establishment was just found murdered," McGonagall answered tersely. "You should understand how severe this is."

"Wait, you think one of us did this?!"

"If you could just wait here for the Aurors to arrive, Miss Granger, I'll show everyone else to their rooms. You aren't to speak to one another until the questioning is complete."

McGonagall gave Hermione a stern look before snapping the door closed behind her. Hermione was suddenly so nervous that she had to sit down in fear of collapsing onto the stone floor. Someone thought she could have done this?! The thought alone was preposterous but it didn't stop her from being anxious about being questioned by the Aurors.

/

"Can you believe this?" Hermione hissed to Draco that evening. Everyone had been questioned and the Aurors had packed up their things and left, heading back to their headquarters so they could examine and cross-examine all the statements. Fred and George had gone back to Hogsmeade, but not without warnings.

"What are they playing at?" George had demanded.

Fred imitated the square-jawed wizard with the bulky neck who'd informed them they were free to go. "Now remember, boys, we're not even close to done with this investigation. You're not to travel or leave the area anytime soon…Hope you didn't have any imminent plans to travel." He snorted. "Well, George, guess we'll lose some money there." His twin shrugged, still clearly incensed. They'd left shortly after that conversation and everyone else had gone their separate ways in the castle; Hermione and Draco ended up in the library.

"I don't think this is going to go over well," Draco said from his seat across from her. "They were already laying on the pressure."

"Pressure?"

"Oh, come on, Hermione. It doesn't matter that I fought for the light in the war, not when I've got this," he ripped back his sleeve on his left arm and gestured to his Dark Mark, "marring my skin! It doesn't matter what I did or how I helped, it's all negated by the fact that I'm a marked Death Eater."

"Former Death Eater," she said, angry that he could even say that. He'd helped them in more ways than even some original Order members had. Hermione had spent months researching ways to remove his Mark, but it was impossible – it was still as dark and crisp as the day he'd been branded and she knew deep down that it would be there the rest of his life. It made her sad that he'd have to tell his kids he had once supported Lord Voldemort, had followed him, but it was helped by the fact that he was brave enough to turn away from that life and help defeat the psychotic man.

"It doesn't matter," he said, waving his hand dismissively. "I'll always be looked at a certain way by the authorities."

"But you fought for the light!" Hermione cried, aghast by what he was saying. "You helped Harry Potter – the 'Chosen One' – take down the evilest wizard of our time!"

"And I have that evil wizard's mark on my arm, Hermione, and that's a fact. A very well known fact."

Hermione sat in silence for a moment, annoyed and upset by what her boyfriend was saying, even if it was the truth. The media had had a field day when the war was over and they were made aware of the relationship between Hermione and Draco. "Order member and Harry Potter's best friend dates Death Eater!" the headlines had said.

She'd been so angry that she'd written letters of outrage to every magazine and newspaper she could think of, trying to retract the statement. Unfortunately, though, even if the media had recanted, the articles were still there and everyone who'd read them had those ideas in their heads. You could retract the words but not the impressions they'd made.

"Did they tell you that they pulled an Edurado's Unbreakable Egg from Fred and George's shop from Slughorn's throat? What do you think that means?" Hermione asked nervously, twisting her hands together in agitation. She'd been shocked and even a little bit frightened when she'd been told that information, but at least the surprise worked in her favour and got the Aurors off her back slightly.

"That some maniac bought the egg at their shop and used it to murder our Professor before building a snowman over his body for some reason," Draco answered easily with a shrug. He'd also been surprised when he'd been told that information but he was so used to masking his thoughts and emotions that the Aurors only saw coldness in his eyes – something that made them sufficiently suspicious. "Probably to throw the authorities off his trail."

"You don't think they're involved, do you?"

"Fred and George?!" Draco asked in quiet surprise. "There's no way."

"You're right. I don't know why I'd even go there."

"They'll figure it out," Draco assured, taking Hermione's hand in his own and pressing a kiss to it. "Either way, it'll get sorted. I'm sure you were right earlier about Slughorn spending his time with strange people."

"You don't think Ron was onto something when he said he thought the war was over, do you?"

"No," Draco answered easily. "People die all the time, it doesn't mean it's because of the war that's already been over for months."

"Yeah," Hermione breathed, but she had a bad feeling.

"It's a one-time thing," Draco said, packing up his things and getting to his feet. "It's been a long day, why don't we call it a night?"

"I hate that we're in different dorms," Hermione said, taking Draco's lead. They'd been together for over two years and had shared a room in Grimmauld place after a year of dating. Sleeping on entirely different sides of the castle was hard. "Want to come back to my common room for a little while? Harry and Ron will probably be there," she said, coaxingly.

Draco smiled softly at her before leaning down and placing a loving, lingering kiss on her lips.

"I would, but I really just want to have a bath and call it a night – it's been a long day."

"Okay," Hermione said, sounding a little bit sad. She really hated all the time they had to spend apart.

Draco gave her a small smile, the one that always made her knees a little weak and her heart pound a little harder before leaning in for another kiss that turned heated pretty quickly, their hands roaming.

"Oi!" Ron yelled when he rounded the corner. "Break it up, you two."

Hermione pulled away from Draco's lips but he wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her into his side tightly, his hand splayed out on her hip.

"What do you guys think about what happened today?" Harry asked, coming up behind Ron and pulling out a chair at the table Hermione and Draco had just vacated, sitting down heavily. Ron sat as well, leaning back and resting his feet on the table.

"I think Hermione's right," Draco answered carefully, looking around to make sure there was no one else in the library before propping his hip against the table and crossing his ankles, relinquishing his hold on Hermione, who crossed her arms and leaned back on a chair behind her. "I think Slughorn was probably looking for gold or a precious item and pissed someone off – someone who wasn't above hurting him to make a point."

"That's what we figure too – he was always trying to collect people and things, and the people he didn't seem interested in always took it a little personally. Either way, we both think it was just a one-time thing."

Hermione nodded, feeling more at ease knowing that they were all in agreeance.

"I was just heading back to the tower," she said after a few moments of silence. "I'm pretty tired."

"Yeah, you looked reeeally tired there just a moment ago," Ron joked, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively, causing Hermione's face to redden. No matter how much her friends joked about her sex life, she always found herself blushing and stammering out a response; she'd been shocked at first, when Harry and Ron figured out she and Draco were sleeping together, that her friends had taken it so well. She was expecting some ranting and arguing about 'sleeping with the enemy', she expected them to tell her to pick either Draco or them – she never, ever expected them to joke and be so at ease with it all – or at least, no more uncomfortable than they'd be with the idea if she were seeing anyone else.

Draco was grinning and looking awfully proud of himself, an emotion he didn't share easily with anyone but the three people he was standing in the library with, but Hermione rolled her eyes and hoisted her book bag onto her shoulder while trying to act like Ron hadn't just caught them full-out snogging in the library – the library! It was her sacred zone, not a place for sexual acts.

"Are you coming?" she asked.

"I'll walk you guys there," Draco said with a nod, picking up his own book bag gracefully and waiting for Harry and Ron to get to their feet before they started for the doors of the library.

Hermione felt better that they'd decided it was a one-time act of murder toward a teacher that was shady and greedy more than anything else. She felt embarrassed and a little awkward about falling under the suspicion that the Weasley twins had anything to do with it; they were much too jovial and kind to do something like that. Just because one of their products was used in the actual murder didn't mean anything, especially considering how popular their brand was – everyone wanted it! Their stores were so busy that they'd had to hire a complete staff to run them if they wanted any time off. _Anyone_ could have waltzed in and bought something that was seemingly innocent with the plan of using it for murder.

Hermione held Draco's hand, thinking about how they should all visit Hogsmeade soon. They'd all gone back to The Burrow for the summer holidays and Hermione really loved the village during the winter – maybe she'd see if they could all go down over the weekend. Surely that wouldn't count as 'leaving the area' or going too far away. She smiled to herself, thinking about the bookshop that she'd love to visit as they turned a corner on the fourth floor – her smile faded immediately.

Professor Trelawney was propped up against the wall, blood all over the lower portion of her face and covering her robes and the floor all around her. Her skin was waxy and dull and her lips were blue; her eyes, which were magnified as usual by her thick glasses were staring directly through the four students, dull and lifeless.

For the second time that day Hermione screamed and turned away roughly, Draco's hands reaching out and pulling her into his chest as his own face paled considerably.

"Oh, my God," Harry breathed before turning on his heel and running.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

"Enter," Professor Dumbledore answered to Harry's frantic knocking, wondering who would be coming to see him at such a late hour.

"Professor!" Harry shouted, bursting through the door and looking pale and frightened. "You have to come quick! I've left Hermione, Ron and Draco there so no one would disturb the scene but you need to send for the Aurors and bring them back!"

"What's happened?" Dumbledore asked sharply, jumping to his feet.

"It's professor Trelawney, Sir! She's been murdered!"

"Let's go," Dumbledore said in answer, brandishing his wand as he followed Harry from the room. Harry ran through the hallways with long strides, barely slowing down for the surprisingly quick older man, pulling up short when they turned the corner.

Dumbledore gasped before turning to his students, his face looking more severe than Harry could ever remember seeing it.

"You found her exactly like this?" he asked the students, taking in their pale faces and trembling bodies.

"Yes, Sir," Draco answered for them, feeling as though his Headmaster was x-raying him and checking for any lies. "We didn't even get too close to her because we didn't want to disturb anything. No other students have been down this corridor since we got here."

"Where were the four of you going?" Dumbledore asked, turning his eyes to Hermione, who looked sick to her stomach.

"We were just going back to the common room, Sir. Draco was walking us there before he went down to his own for the night."

Dumbledore was just opening his mouth to answer when a silvery Lynx patronus bounded up and informed them that the Aurors had arrived. "I've summoned Professor Snape, you four need to meet him by the entrance hall so he can split you up and put you into separate rooms again for questioning." He held up his hand to forestall the disagreement he read from their faces. "Please do as I say. It isn't going to look good that you four were involved in discovering another murder."

"You can't possibly think…" Harry started, but snapped his mouth shut as the members of Law Enforcement barreled around the corner with their wands drawn and pointing, accusing looks on their faces.

Hermione and her friends skirted around the angry Aurors and headed downstairs, wondering whether Snape was going to give them a hard time about what was happening.

"Don't bother," the Potions master drawled when the explanations began to flow from the four. "I know there's no way any of you could be involved in this." They approached him warily, surprised. "Malfoy doesn't have the balls, Potter wouldn't want to destroy his glowing reputation, Weasley wouldn't do it without anything to gain and Granger is much too…perfect."

"There's the professor we all know and love to hate," Hermione stated under her breath.

"Into separate rooms, all of you," he snarled, acting as though they were interrupting some important plans he definitely didn't have.

"Yes, Sir," Harry said, snapping to attention and mock saluting before entering a room. Hermione, Ron and Draco all had to stifle laughs at the look on Snape's face.

/

"I've heard that you disliked Professor Trelawney and personally feel as though Divination is a waste of time," Auror Taylor stated, his hands flat against the table and his face only a few inches away from her own. "In fact, I was even told that you caused a scene in her classroom in your third year before storming away and have been heard since then making disparaging remarks about her character."

Hermione swallowed a lump in her throat, but despite how scared she was, she held her head up high – she had nothing to do with Professor Trelawney's death and she wasn't going to make anyone let her feel like she was in the wrong.

"I disliked her, yes, but not enough to kill her! She was a fraud, someone who only made two prophecies that turned out right in her _entire_ career and spent most of her time predicting the deaths of her students," she answered, deciding to be honest since she had nothing to hide.

"So you admit that you didn't like her?"

"Yes," she answered, staring Auror Taylor in the eye.

"Let's talk about Draco Malfoy," he said, switching gears.

"What about him?" Hermione asked slowly, immediately feeling defensive.

"He was present when both bodies were found," he said, clearly trying to lead her into saying something he wanted to hear.

"So was Harry Potter," Hermione pointed out. "Should we talk about him, too?"

"I doubt Harry Potter had anything to do with these deaths," the Auror answered, his disposition decidedly prickly.

"Yet you obviously think Draco does, which is ridiculous."

"Why is that so ridiculous? He's a marked Death Eater, Miss Granger, and both professors that have been killed were in full support of Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix."

"Did you manage to forget that Draco was 'in full support' of the light side as well?" Hermione asked frostily, narrowing her eyes at the authority figure in front of her. "Draco Malfoy fought for Harry Potter! He helped him out a lot more than anyone else. I certainly didn't see _you_ out there risking your life to keep Harry alive, so maybe you should start looking elsewhere."

The Auror bristled at Hermione's comment but managed to keep his composure despite Hermione's insinuation.

"I understand you're dating Draco Malfoy and that easily clouds your judgement, but you should know that we're pretty sure he's involved in this somehow."

"I think it's your judgement that's been clouded, Auror Taylor," Hermione answered stiffly, crossing her arms across her chest tightly and leaning back in her chair. "You see the mark on his arm and place him into a specific category and somehow ignore the fact that he did everything he could to help Harry defeat Voldemort."

The Auror opened his mouth angrily, a retort on his lips, but there was a knock on the door and he snapped his mouth shut before glaring at her once and going to answer it. Hermione saw another man in Auror robes outside and Auror Taylor stepped out, closing the door behind him. He steamed back into the room after a few moments with a handful of papers that he dropped on the table with force before taking his seat across from her again.

"What do you think of Fred and George Weasley?"

"I think they're very respectable men who wouldn't hurt a fly," Hermione answered tersely, her arms tightening around her middle even more.

"Sybill Trelawney's cause of death was Nosebleed Nougat, which is some sort of pill that makes a person sick until they've taken the other half, which would negate the sickness in a matter of moments. She was never given the antidote and therefore bled out."

Hermione was shocked, yet again, by the information that something the Weasley twins invented was used in the murder of a professor. She sat there in silence as the Auror stared at her, clearly waiting for a response, and she decided to take the route Draco would go with her answer.

"Obviously whoever decided to kill the Professors visited Fred and George's shop before committing these murders. Maybe they had it all planned out or maybe they had the products on hand before they knew they were going to kill our teachers and decided that the products would be the best way to go about."

"Or maybe the Weasley twins decided to use their own merchandise against their teachers."

"Absolutely not," Hermione snarled. "Not only would that be incredibly stupid and incriminating but they are not murderers!"

"What about Rodolphus Lestrange?" The Auror snapped, and Hermione felt as though she'd been slapped.

"Are you seriously trying to say that anyone who killed someone in _a war_ has a black mark against them?! Harry Potter, me, even Professor Dumbledore! Everyone killed in the war, Auror Taylor, a war that was necessary to ensure our world is a better place. Being a soldier doesn't make someone a murderer."

"Does Draco Malfoy frequent Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes?" the Auror asked suddenly, changing gears when he realized Hermione was not going to say anything negative about the Weasley twins.

"No more than Harry Potter, Ronald Weasley, or myself!" Hermione snapped, getting increasingly annoyed.

"So, yes, then?"

"I think we're finished here," Hermione snarled. "You have insulted me and my comrades, displaying an arrogant, conceited attitude towards those who didn't run home to hide from Voldemort. You have made wild allegations without a shred of proof and clearly without a properly conducted investigation of either crime scene, and I'm not talking to you anymore without some sort of legal representation. I didn't think I'd need to request a lawyer and was trying to give you the benefit of the doubt. I've always considered Aurors to be upstanding and meticulous in seeking justice, but clearly that was ridiculous of me and I'll be telling my friends to keep their mouths shut without representation from here on out."

The Auror sat back as though he'd been slapped, shocked that she'd gone that far. He couldn't hold her since he had nothing proving she had anything to do with the deaths, so he could only let her leave and hope the other Aurors were getting something of worth. He collected his papers and stood up, gesturing for her to do the same.

"I'm sure we'll be seeing each other soon," he said with a barely suppressed snarl as he waved his wand at the door, allowing Hermione to disappear through it, she slammed it behind her as she went.

She needed to find Draco, Harry and Ron, because unfortunately, Draco was right – the Aurors were prejudiced against him because of bad choices he'd been forced to make when he was sixteen years old, regardless of whether he'd even been involved with criminal activity – for Voldemort or otherwise. Their investigation thus far was all based on the mark on his arm.

/

Hermione sat on the stairs leading away from the Great Hall and waited for the others to be finished with their interviews, fuming more and more as every second went by. How dare Auror Taylor treat her that way and speak to her about her friends and boyfriend in such a derogatory manner? Shouldn't they be out looking for the actual killer instead of trying to pin it on a bunch of nineteen year olds who were trying to finish their education?

Harry came out after a few moments, looking both exhausted and angry – Hermione could only imagine what they'd said to him.

"I can't believe this," he snarled after spotting Hermione and storming over to her. "They had the gall to ask me about Draco's allegiance, about the twins, about you and Ron, about Professor Snape, and about Draco's parents! They have absolutely no fucking idea what they're doing!"

"They only asked me about the twins and Draco before I put a stop to the interview. I can't believe they're trying to pin it on any of them."

"I told them in no uncertain terms that everyone they'd asked me about was innocent."

Harry was pacing in front of her, running his hands through his hair in agitation. He spun around quickly when another door opened and Ron came out looking rather pale, his freckles standing out on his sallow face.

"They think the twins," he started, but Harry cut him off with a rather forceful, "I know!"

"And Draco," Ron said, looking irritated. "I told them there's no way but they didn't seem too convinced. I had to tell them almost everything I could about my childhood and how the twins were raised and how they've acted. We had to go into details about the death of Rodolphus Lestrange, which is just ridiculous considering we were fighting a sodding war. I wouldn't be surprised if they were arrested within the next few hours, to be honest."

"This is bullshit," Harry snapped. "If this is the way they behave then I'm seriously going to be reconsidering my career options."

Ron nodded and sat on the stairs with Hermione, watching Harry pace as they waited for Draco to make his appearance.

No one spoke for a few minutes until they heard raised voices and the door to Draco's room snap open.

"I didn't do anything!" Draco's voice bellowed in fury, an emotion he hadn't shown for a long time. "You can't do this!"

Hermione jumped up and stood beside Harry, facing the door dead on as a struggling Draco came out with his hands behind his back, the Auror who was interviewing him had a tight grip on his shoulders and Hermione could tell from where she was standing that his hands had been bound.

"What are you doing?!" Ron yelled, running forward with Harry on his heels.

"Mr. Malfoy has been placed under arrest for the murders of Horace Slughorn and Sybill Trelawney."

Hermione gasped in anger and surprise, her body swaying slightly from the shock of the statement.

"That's ridiculous," Harry spat, moving even closer. "On what grounds are you arresting him?"

The Auror looked around, obviously hoping for some backup, but the rest of his team had vacated the area and had headed to Dumbledore's office once their own interrogations were complete. He stammered out some sort of reply but Harry spoke over him roughly.

"Suspicion? You can't arrest someone on suspicion, Smith, and I know you know the rulings of the 1738 Wizengamot precedent just as well as I do! You have absolutely no proof, but I can tell you right now – as I told the Auror who insulted, I mean, interviewed me – I was with Draco all of last night since he stayed in our tower and Hermione was with him all day, and was later joined by Ron and myself before we found Professor Trelawney."

Auror Smith looked worried now, wondering if he'd made a mistake.

"Get these off me," Draco snarled, wriggling his arms. "I'll sue the lot of you if you try and pin this on me, I swear it!"

"He's a Death Eater," the Auror snapped, making it clear that he wasn't willing to release Draco.

Hermione felt rage and hatred take over her senses so fast that she didn't even think twice about it. She didn't remember moving forward but she suddenly found herself standing right next to Harry, her blood rushing through her ears and her hand itching to slap the stupid Auror in front of her. She opened her mouth to snarl out a reply but found she didn't have to since Ron was already hissing at the Auror. Suddenly, she noticed the reason she hadn't hit the insufferable cretin; Harry's hands were clamped over her wrists, holding her in place. She'd have to thank him later, as she really didn't fancy getting arrested herself.

"FormerDeath Eater, you bloody arsehole! He fought with us – he saved my arse at least twice during the war and took more than one torture curse for Hermione, who is his girlfriend of over two years, by the way! Unhand him now or we'll have so much legal representation up your arse you won't know what to do with them! I'm tired of this shit! We fought the war to end prejudice, not to turn it around on everyone else. Of course, you'd know that if you'd shown up for any of the battles."

The Auror took one look at the angry faces in front of him before waving his wand and releasing the magical handcuffs that were pinning Draco's hands behind his back.

"One toe out of line, Mr. Malfoy, and you'll be coming with us whether you have these three to back you up or not! Once I find even a shred of evidence that points at you you're going to be finished."

Draco sent the man a hate-filled glare before looking at his two friends and girlfriend in turn, taking Hermione's hand, which was shaking with rage, and leading the group up the stairs of the entrance hall and away from the angry Auror behind them.

"I'll be staying in Gryffindor tower tonight, I think," he said, his voice trembling slightly and quieter now that the rage was diminishing and being overwhelmed by fear.

"They aren't pinning this on you, Draco," Ron snarled, sounding angrier than Hermione could ever remember hearing him. "We will do _everything_ in our power to ensure that doesn't happen!"

Draco gave a tight nod that all of them understood to be a thank you as they made their way to the seventh floor, each of them silent and lost in their own anger and thoughts.

/

Draco woke up with a stiff neck, dead arm, and a mouthful of hair. The tip of his nose was cold and his fingers were feeling rather icy.

He'd fallen asleep on the couch in the Gryffindor common room the night before and as he cleared the bushy hair from his mouth he realized that his girlfriend had fallen asleep with him. His neck was stiff from being propped up on the armrest and his arm was dead from Hermione's weight on it all night, but he smiled down at her sleeping form, thinking he wouldn't have moved it even if he'd noticed earlier. He wasn't the most expressive person but it seemed like Hermione understood what it meant when he gave her a small smile, the smile he reserved for only her, or when his eyes softened somewhat when he looked at her.

Harry and Ron also seemed to be able to pick up what he was thinking and feeling with just a specific look, or a certain shift in his demeanor. He never really smiled at them but they'd seen it on his face when he was with Hermione and that was good enough for them. They understood he was a quiet and somewhat ornery bloke, but they didn't try and change it – they accepted it instead and learned how to read him, which in itself made him pretty happy.

He reached into his pocket slowly and extracted his wand without too much movement, pointing it at the fireplace and igniting the flames again. It had died down during the night and the common room had cooled considerably, but just moments after lighting it he was able to feel the heat seep back into the room.

Draco had been almost arrested a few weeks before and since that time he stayed in the Gryffindor tower, feeling the need to use Harry, Ron and Hermione as an alibi and not giving himself even a second where the Aurors could point to him to place the blame. He usually slept on a cot in the eighth year boys' dorm that had been placed in between Harry and Ron's beds, but Hermione had snuggled him on the couch the night before and he was so comfortable and happy that he'd fallen asleep.

Hermione snorted quietly before smacking her lips and groaning, the light shining through one of the windows of the tower and directly onto her face.

Her eyes fluttered and Draco felt her hands tighten on his stomach and shoulder for a moment, clearly wondering where she was, but then her eyes snapped open and she looked up at him before smiling shyly. He loved that she still looked at him that way.

"Good morning," she said as she pushed herself up and ran her hands through her hair, trying to situate it.

He smiled and sat up, stretching out his neck carefully before cracking his fingers.

"I was wondering if we should go to the village today since we all completed our homework last night?" she said, making it sound like a question even though it wasn't.

"I need to get some new quills," he said as an answer, causing her to smile at him. He'd never straight up jump at the chance to go anywhere with her and her friends – even after two years he still managed to say he wanted to be there with them without actually saying it.

"I'm going to bathe and get ready then!" Hermione said happily, glad they had a plan for the day. "Will you tell Harry and Ron? I'm going to invite Ginny and Luna as well, I think it would be great for all of us to get out for a while – I feel like all we've done the last few weeks is classes and homework."

Draco nodded before leaning down and kissing her.

"Morning breath," she said, pulling away quickly, but he just smiled at her and kissed her again, clearly not worried about such things. Hermione sighed as the kiss deepened, Draco's tongue slithering into her mouth as she accepted it happily, rubbing her own along it and completely forgetting about being courteous about her probably awful breath.

A whistle sounded behind them and Hermione pulled away, her face reddening when she saw Parvati and Lavender standing at the bottom of their staircase.

"I'll go get dressed, then," Draco said, turning away and climbing the boys' staircase, looking back at Hermione over his shoulder.

"I still don't know how you did it, Hermione," Lavender said, watching Draco disappear with longing in her eyes.

"Did what?" Hermione asked, turning to the two girls.

"Landed _that_ ," Lavender said, gesturing to Draco. "He's so… hot. Unemotional, but hot."

"He isn't unemotional," Hermione defended immediately. "You have to be willing to look for the emotion in order to catch it, but it's there."

"Do you love him?" Parvati asked conversationally as she moved farther into the common room. She didn't sound anything but curious and Hermione had no problem answering her.

"Yes."

"Does he love you?" Lavender asked, sounding a little bit more condescending than her counterpart.

"Yes," Hermione asked without a second of hesitation.

"He's told you?!" Lavender asked with a sigh. "I've always wanted to hear a man say those words to me."

Hermione bit her lip for a second before telling the girls she needed to have a bath before they left for Hogsmeade, leaving the room suddenly. Draco had only actually said the words 'I love you' to Hermione once, but she knew by the way he looked at her, his eyes soft and a small smile on his lips that it was true. She knew by the protectiveness he had toward her and the fact that he always wanted to be touching her in some way.

Draco loved her and Hermione didn't need to hear him say it regularly to know that it was true – and she was completely fine with that.

Hermione went to the prefects' bathroom to do her business instead of having to have a rushed bath in the shared dorm with the other Gryffindor girls. She started filling the large sunken tub and then moved away, hanging up her towel and disrobing. She carried her wand with her and laid it on the edge of the tub, always a little nervous about having it too far away – an obvious reaction to the war she'd fought in for years. Hermione sat on the edge and dangled her feet into the water, submerging her body slowly since the water was so hot and once she was in the tub completely she moved to the running tap and turned it off.

She lay on her back and floated on top of the water peacefully for a few minutes, loving the weightless feeling as her hair spread out around her, the water diminishing all the frizziness.

She finally dunked under the water, making sure her hair was completely drenched before shampooing it, but when she surfaced and wiped the excess water from her eyes, she opened them to complete and utter darkness


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

"Hello?" Hermione called, feeling nervous in the pitch black. "This one's taken," she said, hoping there was just some sort of mistake since she was underwater and the place could have been mistaken as empty.

Hermione tried to remember where her wand was, but with absolutely no source of light she was disoriented. She'd swam underwater and now had no idea where she was standing in the large tub. She had just touched the edge of the large bath before a hex shot straight at her from the other side of the room. It was dazzling to her eyes in the otherwise impenetrable darkness and she pushed herself backward through the water not a moment too soon – the hex hit the wall where she'd just been standing and blew the stone apart. Hermione held in a shriek and knew she needed to get out of the water because every sound was magnified through the room with every movement she made.

She moved to the opposite ledge as quietly as possible, her mind going a mile a minute as she tried to figure out what she was going to do and how she was going to find her wand. She reached out to the ledge and pushed up, pulling herself from the water and almost letting out a relieved sigh when she realized her hand was pressing into her wand – this was where she'd entered the water.

Another curse shot through the air and Hermione pulled herself out of the way, rolling across the cold stone of the bathroom floor to avoid it, but it caught her in the calf and Hermione let out an involuntary grunt of pain as her leg was sliced open.

She scurried to her feet as she heard movement – a swish of robes – that seemed to be advancing on her. She clutched her wand tightly while trying to ignore the burning laceration on her calf and the warm, sticky flow of blood that was flowing over her left foot.

Hermione wanted to retaliate but had no idea where her attacker was. The person seemed to be in one spot one moment and a completely different area of the bathroom the next. She couldn't light her wand without giving away her own position much too clearly. She thought for a moment and realized that if she knew where she'd found her wand, she'd also be able to figure out a way to get out of the bathroom.

She moved on silent feet, waiting for her attacker to hex her with the final blow of death, but it seemed as though the person had hindered themselves with the darkness as well, and wasn't able to see Hermione any better than she could see.

Hermione tip-toed through the room with her hands outstretched in front of her, another silent spell ripping through the air to the left of her, lighting up the room around her enough for her to be able to see her towel as well as the door for a brief moment before it collided with the wall and exploded.

It also would have lit up her position so she knew she needed to be fast. She rushed forward and snatched her towel off a hook on the wall in the same moment that she ripped open the door and threw herself through it, panting hard.

She looked around, desperate, wrapping her towel tightly around her body. There was no one in the hallway so she took off at a run, as fast as her injured leg would allow, for Gryffindor tower.

It was apparently still early because the hallways were empty as she made her way to the portrait of the Fat Lady, which she burst through hysterically after giving the password. She was breathing hard, feeling like she couldn't suck the air into her lungs fast enough as the panic of what had just happened settled in.

"Hermione?" Harry asked, sounding as though he was a lot further away than he was.

Hermione sunk to her knees, breathing hard as traitorous tears broke through the dam and her breathing turned into high pitched sobs that were tearing from her throat almost painfully. She felt hands on her in the next second and managed to calm herself down enough to throw her arms around Draco's neck as he lifted her to her feet.

"What happened?" he asked, concerned. Ron was rushing forward, gesturing to her leg, and Hermione buried her face into Draco's neck, assaulted by flashbacks from the war.

"I'm going to get Dumbledore," Harry stated, running his hand across Hermione's bare upper back as he made his way to the portrait, concerned about her. "Ron, go ask Dean if you don't feel comfortable healing her leg, he can do it."

Ron nodded and dropped to his knees to inspect her calf. Draco soothed her with quiet words that Ron couldn't hear over Hermione's harsh breathing. The redhead had been wary of Draco Malfoy when he and his parents had first come to the Order, but after a few months he'd realized that the other man wasn't a bad person at all – he'd been an arrogant bully when they were younger but they'd also been eleven years old. It was hard to hold that against him since Ron himself had been awful to Hermione when they were that age.

Draco was quiet and kept mostly to himself. Ron felt a bit proud to know that he and his two friends had managed to weasel their way into his life – very few people were important to Draco and he spoke to no one but those he cared about.

It was obvious that Draco treated Hermione well and made her feel happy and loved, even if he and Harry hadn't witnessed it too overtly over the last couple years; he knew from experience that Hermione was a smart woman who wouldn't take any mistreatment. She looked to him for strength in tough situations and would turn to him with a laugh or smile if something good happened, which proved to her other friends that Draco was, surprisingly, good enough for her. Just because he didn't openly flaunt his feelings didn't mean they weren't there.

Ron was happy for the two of them.

After inspecting the cut, Ron knew he'd be able to heal it – the curse had just nicked her instead of hitting her full on, which was good – but then he thought better of it. He pulled out his wand and siphoned away the blood while wondering if it would be wise to heal the cut before any authorities had seen it. They were already unjustly suspicious of Ron and his friends and he didn't want to get rid of any evidence that would prove something had happened to Hermione.

"Let's get you dressed, love," Ron heard Draco whisper, and tried to pretend he hadn't. Draco was strange about feelings and words; if he'd known Ron had heard what he'd said, he would be embarrassed and probably a bit angry.

Hermione nodded and unwound her arms from Draco's neck as Ron got to his feet and slapped his hands together twice, moving back toward the couches.

"Harry should be back with Dumbledore any moment," Ron said, perching on the edge of a cushion on an armchair. "I've left the cut because I think someone in authority should see it before it's healed."

"Good thinking, Ron," Hermione said, allowing Draco to usher her toward the staircase that lead to her dorms with a hand at the small of her back. "I'm just going to get dressed; I'd rather not be in a towel when our Headmaster arrives."

Hermione disappeared up the staircase and Draco dropped onto the couch, sitting ramrod straight and staring into the fire.

"They're going to try and blame me," he said to Ron after a moment.

"It won't work. You were with me and Harry the entire time, and everyone knows that you wouldn't do anything to hurt her."

"They don't know me, though. They've already tried to pin the murders on me with no evidence at all."

Ron wasn't sure what to say, so they sat in silence for a moment until the door opened. Harry entered with Dumbledore and McGonagall trailing behind him, looking anxious. Seconds later, Hermione stepped through the doorway at the bottom of the girls' staircase, wearing jeans and a t-shirt with her hair pulled into a large, messy bun at the back of her head.

"Harry tells us that you were attacked this morning in one of the prefect's bathrooms?" Dumbledore asked immediately, advancing on her.

Hermione nodded and relayed the story of what happened, showing them her sliced open leg – no longer bleeding – and informing them that if they went to the bathroom there should be large chunks of stone missing from the wall and the tub itself.

McGonagall offered to check the bathroom and left in a hurry, leaving Dumbledore to decide what to do with the information of a student being attacked and Hermione's wounded leg. He looked at the youngsters in front of him; Ron looked angry and Harry looked both angry and confused. Draco's face was stone and Dumbledore couldn't tell what he was thinking but the cold anger radiating throughout the room made it obvious that Draco Malfoy was upset.

"I'll need to inform the Aurors about this," Dumbledore said, moving toward the couches and surveying his students. Hermione had joined Draco on the couch, their shoulders and thighs pressing together from their closeness, but Harry scoffed from his seat.

"What's the point?" he asked tersely. "They're just going to go on blaming the innocent ones without actually doing anything to help. We could probably figure this out better than they could."

"What did they look like, Hermione?" Ron asked, sitting forward.

"I didn't see anyone," she answered. "The room was already pitch black when I came out of the water and they didn't speak either, used all non-verbal spells, so I couldn't hear a voice… but…" Hermione sat back for a moment and closed her eyes, trying to draw forth clearer memories of her time in the bathroom. "When they shot spells at me it lit the person up for a moment and I think… I'm pretty sure it was a female."

"A female?" Dumbledore asked, his eyes piercing Hermione closely as if to judge her veracity.

"It's hard to say with the robes we wear in the wizarding world, but the height…it looked like it."

"Is there anything else that makes you think it was a female other than the robes?" Dumbledore asked curiously.

"Honestly, it's just a feeling. The person's aura felt almost familiar to me, which I know

sounds crazy but it's true – I think I know her and I feel even more confident now that it was a woman."

"The Aurors will probably want to speak to you," the headmaster informed her as he got to his feet. "I'm going to call them in now."

Hermione nodded and let out a breath, mumbling a sarcastic thanks.

McGonagall entered the common room before Dumbledore had taken more than a few steps away from the students.

"There's nothing in the bathroom to indicate a fight had taken place," she told the room, causing Hermione's eyebrows to shoot up as she started protesting. "It's possible whoever did it could have mended the room so it wasn't obvious a fight had taken place; the only thing I was found was this."

McGonagall held up a fist and the group noticed a black powder-like substance cupped in her hand.

"Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder?" Dumbledore asked sharply, striding forward and inspecting the powder in McGonagall's hand. "This is the third time something from the Weasley twins' shop has been found around crimes and I'm going to have to let the Aurors know about it."

"They don't have anything to do with this," Hermione argued. "I told you, it's a female."

"We'll be in contact. Please stay on school property today so it's easy for the Aurors to find you when they need you."

Dumbledore and McGonagall swept out of the room and Ron let out a groan, nervous for his brothers.

"Guess we aren't going to Hogsmeade today," Draco said, getting to his feet.

"Tell us more about the attack, Hermione. Who do you think it was?"

"I don't know, Harry, I was just trying to get Dumbledore to believe me that I thought it was a female. I just have a feeling, a hunch. It's a woman."

They speculated for a while, Draco pacing around and shooting Hermione concerned looks every so often as Harry and Ron tried to figure out the puzzle – blaming everyone from Professor Vector to Romilda Vane. They stopped their odd behaviour as students started descending the staircases, ready to start their weekends with a hearty breakfast.

"Hey guys," Ginny called, approaching the group and kissing Harry quickly. "What's going on?"

"Not too much," Ron answered, giving everyone else threatening looks that clearly told them to keep their mouths shut. Ginny was still a little fragile from the war and the things she'd witnessed and done; so Ron went out of his way to make her feel safe and secure. Telling her that her friend had been attacked and two of her brothers were most likely going to be blamed wasn't going to accomplish anything but worry her, so the rest of the group said nothing.

"We're thinking about going for a walk later," Harry said, smiling. "Hopefully you'll join us."

"And invite Luna," Ron blurted, causing Hermione to giggle quietly and Draco to smirk.

"We should have another snowball fight," Dean said, approaching the group.

"Yeah," Neville agreed. "It was a great time, until the end, and everyone was getting along so nicely. I think I'll invite Hannah Abbott too…" he said, drifting toward the portrait hole so he could head down for breakfast. Hermione personally didn't think she would ever partake in a snowball fight ever again but kept that thought to herself as she shared a painful smile with her boyfriend.

The door burst open and knocked Neville backward, tipping him onto his arse. The entire common room, which was quite crowded with students, went silent.

Four Aurors barged through and went directly for Draco, who was sitting with Hermione on the couch and watching them approach. When he realized he was the target he jumped to his feet and backed away slowly, his hands held up in a placating gesture.

"Draco Malfoy, you are under arrest for the murders of Horace Slughorn, Sybill Trelawney and the attack on Hermione Granger."

"What?" he yelled, anger flashing through his eyes. "I didn't do this!"

"Save it," another Auror snapped, waving his wand and forcing Draco's hands behind his back. "We all know you had a stock of Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder to use during the war – some would say it was your specialty – and now it's been used in an attack in the school."

Draco opened his mouth again to reply when Hermione jumped to her feet and stood in front of him. "It wasn't Draco!" she yelled, pleading. "It was a female, I know it was!"

"It was too dark for you to see anything, Miss. Granger, and it would be in your best interest to stop covering for your boyfriend – it could get you into a lot of trouble with the law."

"I'm not covering for anyone!"

"I wouldn't hurt her," Draco said, anger at the unjust accusation pulsing off of him in waves as the Aurors slapped magical cuffs over his wrists and gripped him by the forearms. "I would never hurt her!"

"You did, Malfoy, when you attacked her today."

"I did not attack her!" he snarled, trying to twist out of the Auror's grip. "I love her, Goddamnit, and I would never hurt her!"

"Save it," the Auror said again, forcing him toward the portrait hole. "I have eyewitnesses who saw you leave that bathroom within twenty minutes of when Miss Granger says she left."

Draco's eyes were wild and Hermione wanted to go to him and comfort him; Draco was claustrophobic and she was sure that even the handcuffs, along with the thought of Azkaban prison, were scaring him immensely. He didn't like being unable to move about freely and she could see the fear flashing across his face.

"This won't last, Draco," Hermione cried, trying to run forward but found that she, as well as Harry and Ron, were being restrained by the other Aurors.

"We'll get you out as soon as we can!" Harry reassured, yelling across the common room while trying to fight off the Auror who was holding him by the arms. "I promise!"

Draco craned his neck around as far as he could and met Hermione's eyes. "I love you," he said, calmer than he'd been moments before.

"I love you, too," she called, tears blurring her vision and making her voice wobble. "We'll get you out as soon as possible Draco, I swear," she added, but they were already gone through the portrait hole.

Hermione let out a sob and tried to pull her arms out of the Auror's grasp again, fighting to see her boyfriend before he was thrown into a cell in Azkaban and faced with his worst fears.

"Let me go!"

"None of you children," Hermione glared, "are to leave this room until your Head of House has come to speak to you," one of the Aurors said as the others let go of her and her friends. "If you do we will have no qualms about arresting you as accomplices to Draco Malfoy."

"You're making a serious mistake," Ron snarled into the Auror's face, making a few of the witnesses gasp in surprise at his daring. "You're going to be ruined when we're finished with you. The Prophet is going to have a field day with your complete prejudice and incompetence. Ginny, can I have some parchment and a quill, please? I have some letters to write."

The Auror stepped back in shock, realizing that Ron Weasley, a prominent war hero despite his youth, was not only going to be writing to lawyers but also to every paper that would take his statement. Ginny turned around and ran upstairs to her bedroom, emerging after only a few moments with a roll of parchment, a handful of quills and a bottle of ink.

"You're going to regret this, Auror…McKinnon," Harry growled, reading the man's badge. He ripped off a chunk of parchment and beginning to write, too. The Aurors turned away and left the common room, looking a little worried about the fact that 'the Chosen One' was clearly set against them.

"I'll take this set of letters straight to the Owlery as soon as you're finished. Then you won't have to waste time taking them up there, you can just keep writing," Ginny offered, waiting for Harry to finish scribbling out a note to a very respected lawyer as Ron penned one to Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy.

Hermione sat on the couch in shock, barely able to believe that her boyfriend had just been arrested for something she knew without a shadow of a doubt that he hadn't done. Ginny looked at her and was about to approach but Harry and Ron simultaneously tore off pieces of parchment and thrust them toward her without even looking at her before going back to writing letters.

Ginny picked up the parchment and turned on her heel. "I'll be back for more as soon as these are sent," she said and went through the portrait hole without waiting for an answer.

"Right," said Harry loudly, standing and facing the bemused Gryffindors, "if anyone in this room actually thinks that Draco would voluntarily do anything to hurt Hermione," Harry said loudly, staring around the room, "let me tell you that we won't put up with it! If it weren't for Draco, I would probably be dead right now. I owe him my life and the lives of many people who mean to world to me. Yes, he has a Dark Mark, but I think he's rectified that one poor decision by all of the great things he's done. He's going to need your support this time, and I need you to please leave Hermione alone until Draco is back with us, which I'm sure will be sooner rather than later!"

/

"Where the hell is Ginny?" Ron asked, running his hands through his hair in agitation. Everyone had finally carried on with their own day and left the common room and Hermione had taken up pacing, wondering how Draco was doing and whether or not he was all right. Unfortunate things sometimes happened to known Death Eaters in Ministry custody, and she couldn't bear thinking about what he might be suffering. Better to focus on comforting Ron.

"Maybe she took the letters and then went for breakfast or something," Hermione said distractedly.

Harry's eyes snapped up quickly, panic coursing through him.

"She said she'd be back immediately after sending the first ones," Harry said, the alarm in his voice making both Hermione and Ron turn to him. "You don't think…?"

"Oh, God," Hermione cried and ran toward the portrait hole without waiting for the other two. They caught her halfway down the first hallway, their long legs overtaking her strides quickly.

"Let's check the Owlery first," Harry said, tearing through the hallways with his friends on his heels, pushing through students who were walking casually to or from breakfast.

They ran on, their footfalls and ragged breathing the only sounds she could focus on as she pushed her way through students, their voices and calls of hello falling on deaf ears. Hermione felt sick; she didn't have a good feeling about what they were going to find in the Owlery. It was unlike Ginny not to keep her word, especially if given to Harry, so it didn't make sense that she hadn't returned immediately after sending the letters.

They were running up the circular staircase that wrapped around the tower of the Owlery in an awkward single file, desperate to get to the top and see that Ginny was okay and had just gotten sidetracked, but Hermione knew, deep down, that wouldn't be the case.

Harry went through the door first, letting out a strange groan that had Hermione's heart clenching in fear and pain, but when Ron went through and let out a guttural cry, Hermione knew.

She wasn't expecting there to be so much blood, though.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

Hermione was sitting on a couch directly in front of the fire at Grimmauld Place, staring into the flames and for once in her life not even remotely thinking about the schoolwork and classes she was missing.

Ginny was dead, blown apart with a Bombtastic Bomb, another product of Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. It was much like a muggle grenade, but usually spewed confetti everywhere upon triggering. Someone had tampered with it in order to make it deadly. Ginny, at least, hadn't known what had hit her.

Hermione couldn't really remember what had happened after they'd found Ginny's body, blown to smithereens. Hermione, Harry, Ron and Draco were excused from school until they felt strong enough to go back. Hermione didn't even know who'd gone to Dumbledore, but it hadn't been her, Harry or Ron. They were met at Grimmauld Place by family and friends – Harry had fully restored the former headquarters and had been living there since the War – Hermione was joined by Narcissa and Lucius, and the Weasleys left for their own home almost immediately.

She immediately petitioned for Draco to be released from Azkaban, since he had been in Auror custody during Ginny's murder. She had yet to hear back. She'd gone to visit him the day after his arrest but was not allowed in since she wasn't immediate family. Narcissa and Lucius had assured her that Draco was doing as well as could be expected and should be released soon since he was clearly not responsible for the deaths.

Harry sat down heavily beside her, jarring her out of her thoughts. His eyes were swollen and red and his nose raw from continuous tissue use – he'd taken Ginny's death particularly hard. Ron and the rest of the Weasleys hadn't been seen since leaving headquarters 5 days ago, but Hermione respected the fact that they'd need to mourn with each other.

"I can't believe this," Harry murmured, his voice hoarse.

Hermione didn't reply. There was really nothing that she could say and she didn't want to give him any stupid, false apologies. The front door of the house opening caught her attention and she sat up straight, straining her ears to discover who had arrived. All she could hear was heavy boot steps across the hardwood planks, heading straight for them.

She jumped to her feet when a blond head peered around the door, visibly relieved when he saw that Hermione was safe and well. She ran to Draco, throwing her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist, letting him support her entire weight.

"You're out!"

"Thanks to a whole host of angry letters to the Ministry," Draco said, inclining his head. "I heard about Ginny, Harry… I'm really sorry."

Harry shrugged and Draco moved forward, still carrying Hermione, and sat beside Harry on the couch with Hermione straddling his lap.

"How are you doing?" Harry asked, and for the first time in the last two days Hermione heard some sort of emotion in his voice.

"Better now that I'm out. I'm never going back to that place," Draco said with finality, shrugging his shoulders. Hermione understood immediately that Draco didn't want to get into any details about what had occurred in the presence of all the rapists, murderers and Death Eaters that were kept in the prison. And the dementors. Hermione shuddered just thinking about those particular beasts.

"I had a lot of time to think, though, while I was there; knowing I was innocent kept the dementors mostly at bay. I think we need to call a meeting with Dumbledore…I have an idea."

"An idea to do what?" Harry asked, curiosity alight in his voice.

"An idea to draw the killer out."

/

"Draco," Dumbledore said as he entered the room. "I'm glad to see you out safely and in good health."

Draco inclined his head at his headmaster, who had taken much longer than anticipated to respond to their request for a meeting, and waited for the man to take a seat. Ron had come for the meeting, the first time his friends had seen him in the last three weeks. He looked beaten down but interested in what was going to happen. Unsurprisingly, his parents weren't taking the death of their only daughter well. Molly had had a complete mental breakdown, reverting to the time when his sister was a young child. It had been difficult for her children and especially her husband to watch.

Hermione, Draco, Harry and Ron were all crammed together on one couch, Hermione and Draco's hands clasped tightly, her other shoulder pressed close against Harry's as Ron sat on Harry's other side. Dumbledore took the armchair that was placed directly across from the couch.

"Harry, Ron, Hermione, I hope you're all managing."

They nodded to their teacher and Hermione returned his greeting.

After a moment, Draco began. "I've had an idea to draw the killer out." Dumbledore looked at him sharply. "It came to my attention that some of this has something to do with Harry, Sir. Hermione is his best friend and was attacked and Ginny… well… yeah. I thought if we all went back to school as normal that we'd be able to draw the killer out somehow. For some reason, they want some of us gone and they want the Weasley twins to be blamed for it. I know it's dangerous but we've all talked about it and we'd rather catch this person instead of live in fear, especially considering we all want to finish our schooling. I think the murderer is going to go after Hermione again over any of us, I mean, if you think about it – so far two drunks and two girls have been attacked. No one who would put up too much of a fight in the grand scheme of things – not that I'm saying you're weak, Hermione, that's obviously not the case. This asshole hasn't come for Ron, Harry, or me though, and I think that's interesting."

"You agree that it could be a female?" Dumbledore asked while Harry and Ron looked at Draco in shock. They had never heard him speak so much at one time in the couple years they'd been friends and that told them just how serious he was about the whole matter.

"I do. I trust Hermione, and she thinks it's a woman. By the few things I've noticed, I'm inclined to agree with her. I think if Hermione goes somewhere alone again – preferably not to have a bath because of the next part of the plan, but somewhere… and we followed under Harry's cloak then we could catch the person in the act."

"I'd like to keep the aurors informed about this," Dumbledore answered, his fingers steepled together while he watched Draco with that tell-tale twinkle in his eye. Hermione got the distinct feeling that the old man was only saying that to see if he could get a rise out of her usually silent boyfriend.

"No," Draco snarled, suddenly fierce. Harry and Ron looked at him in surprise again. "I don't want anyone to know about this until after the fact. I mean anyone who isn't in this room because we have no idea who the killer is and we can't be tipping them off and letting them get away scott free. We can capture the person ourselves – we did it loads of times in the war so it won't be any different – and call the Aurors after the fact."

"I want to catch this person more than you could ever understand, Headmaster," Ron said after a moment of silence.

Dumbledore sighed dramatically.

"Fine," he said, and saw a flash of triumph in Draco's eyes and Hermione seemed to tense with excitement. "You four can take the next few days off and come back to school again on Monday. I want Hermione followed everywhere. I mean it: she goes nowhere alone, not even the bathroom."

"I'll take that post," Draco said, turning to the other two men. Harry rolled his eyes and Ron cracked a small smile, something Hermione was glad to see.

"Can all of you perform a disillusionment charm?" Dumbledore asked after a moment. Draco, Harry and Hermione all nodded but Ron hesitated for a second, glancing at Hermione.

"I've never been really good at them, Sir," Ron admitted.

"You'll have the cloak on you at all times, then. If you approve, Harry?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Wonderful. If you don't catch the person within the first week, however, I'll be calling the Aurors in and letting them take control of the situation. I know how capable you all are, but there's still a murderer on the loose and I'd really prefer if we could keep anyone else from dying."

"But, Sir," Draco started, but Dumbledore held up his hand and stopped him.

"That's my final word, Draco."

Draco let out a breath and nodded, tightening his hand around Hermione's as he realized their Headmaster had already been pretty generous in allowing them to do what Draco had proposed. Draco had purposely used Dumbledore's past against him – their Headmaster had always let Harry and his friends do dangerous things and take situations into their own hands while they were growing up. He hadn't been disappointed.

"Okay," he answered after a breath.

"I'll see you on Monday," the Headmaster said while getting to his feet. "Ron, once again I'd like to offer my condolences."

"Thank you, Sir, and thank you for allowing us to do this. You don't know how much it means to me."

"Hopefully it all will go as planned," Dumbledore said, sounding a little bit unsettled, but he turned away and headed for the fireplace, giving a final farewell before he disappeared in the green flames.

"Do you think it'll work?" Hermione asked, her voice soft as she leaned into Draco.

"Yes, I do," Harry said, his voice full of fire.

"I hope so," Ron added. "I want revenge for Ginny. She… she didn't deserve what happened to her."

"No, Ron, she didn't. We all miss her and we're all here for you," Hermione said, reaching across Harry and squeezing Ron's hand for a moment.

"I think…I don't think I want to go back home," he said, squeezing Hermione's hand back before relinquishing his hold and running his hand through his hair. "Would it be okay if I stayed here? It's just so heavy there all the time. Fred and George are raring to get away too, I can tell just by looking at them."

"Of course you can stay here," Harry answered immediately, glad that Ron seemed to be getting better already.

Ron stood from the couch, pacing, then moved to the chair that Dumbledore had vacated, giving the other three more room.

"I love my family and I miss Ginny as much as everyone else but they're still so sad and depressed and…I know for a fact Ginny wouldn't have wanted us to be that way. She would want us to remember the good times, I know she would."

"Of course she would, Ron, she was the least selfish person I know," Hermione said quietly, resting her head on Draco's shoulder.

"She definitely was."

"She was also one of the strongest people I know. We will always have great memories of her, you guys, and that's so important."

They sat in silence for a while, each thinking their own thoughts about Ginny and remembering the good times they'd had with her and Ron suddenly laughed.

"Did you talk yourself out, Draco? You haven't said a word since Dumbledore left."

"Yeah," Draco replied quietly, causing Harry to start laughing too.

"I honestly don't think I've ever heard you speak so much at once since we became friends. It let me know how passionate you are about this."

"I just want Hermione to be safe…" he said haltingly but didn't finish his sentence. He was going to say that he wasn't sure he could live if she'd been murdered but realized that would be in extremely bad taste considering that Harry was going through that right at that moment. He didn't know how the other wizard was able to go on because Draco knew that if Hermione had been murdered scant months after the war that he'd lose it and most likely avada himself.

He manoeuvred Hermione down so she was lying curled up on the couch and resting her head in his lap; her breaths evened out after a while and he realized she'd fallen asleep.

"I'm going to go pack," Ron said after about half an hour. "I'll be back soon."

"I think I'm just going to take her up to bed," Draco said after Ron had disappeared. He gently moved Hermione from his lap so he could lift her into his arms carefully without waking her up before moving to the doorway. "You should try and get some sleep too, mate," he said to Harry, who smiled slightly at the term of endearment.

"I will, Draco. Thank you, by the way."

"For what?"

"For caring about us all so much. I never would have believed this was how our lives would have turned out when I was younger, but I'm glad it has and I really appreciate the things you do for us."

Draco's cheeks reddened and he looked at Harry for a few moments, looking embarrassed, before he gave him a nod and a small lift of the left side of his lips before turning away and heading upstairs with Hermione secure in his grasp.

/

Ron stayed at Harry's with his friends for the remaining few days before they headed back to school. Hermione was shocked by how well she'd began sleeping once they were all back under the same roof and she could tell her friends and boyfriend were sleeping better too. Ron seemed happier and the twins had even stopped by for dinner one night, confirming Ron's story about their house being too depressing and oppressive so stay in any more – they knew their parents were mourning but it was hard to be there.

"I'm staying in your tower again," Draco said as they trudged through the deep snow up to the castle doors. Hermione knew that what he really meant to say was that he didn't want to be away from her any more than absolutely necessary and that he didn't want to be in the dungeons where he felt alone, but that wasn't something Draco would ever say out loud.

"I didn't expect anything different," Harry said, who also seemed to understand what Draco was trying to say.

They were all funny that way.

They entered the castle and made their way through the crowded corridors – dinner had just ended on Sunday evening and the students were all making their way from the Great Hall back to their dorms. Everyone was staring, having heard that Draco Malfoy had been arrested for the murders and then Ginny Weasley was found dead just hours later.

"You'd think they'd have some respect," Hermione snarled under breath as she gripped Draco's hand harder in her own.

"I'm sure the rumor mill has been running on overdrive since we left, Hermione. It's been a month since we've been gone and you know how this school is," Harry answered, glaring at everyone who looked at them.

"I heard he murdered them all."

"I can't believe they just let him go free."

"As if the Golden Trio are still sticking beside him."

Hermione's eyes narrowed before she looked at her boyfriend, whose face was set like a stone. She knew he could hear what people were saying but he'd put on his mask so no one would know just how affected he was by the hurtful words. She really wished people knew how quiet and reserved he was after everything he'd gone through during the war. If only they could understand how much he was hurt by the negative things people said about him, but he would never let people know that or see that side of him. Hermione felt lucky enough that she and her friends were allowed access to that side of his life and even Harry and Ron barely saw it.

The foursome made their way up to the tower amidst all the whispering. Professor McGonagall was standing there awaiting their arrival.

"What are you doing here, Mr. Malfoy?"

"He's staying in our tower," Harry answered, stepping right into the conversation.

"We can't have that, Mr. Potter. Mr. Malfoy was sorted into Slytherin and he's going to have to go back to his own dormitory. If we allow him to continue to stay here then we'd have to allow other students to do so and the whole system would break down. Professor Snape has asked to see you upon your arrival, Mr. Malfoy, and I'm sorry that I can't allow you to stay in the Gryffindor tower."

Draco sighed and turned to his friends, kissing Hermione on the lips quickly before turning around and heading back the way he'd come.

"Meet us in the library in an hour!" Ron called as Hermione watched him go with a frown.

He'd been staying in their tower most of the year, who cared if he did it now? She'd be speaking to Dumbledore.

/

"Where's Hermione?" Draco grunted as he took a seat across from Harry and Ron in the library. He looked peaky and miserable.

"She'll be here soon."

"She's not supposed to be alone," Draco hissed.

"She's with Dumbledore, and he's bringing her back here when they're finished talking."

"Oh," Draco said, almost sagging with relief.

"What did Snape want?" Ron asked, shooting a glare at a fourth year who was watching them from a few tables away. The boy jumped and looked away quickly, his cheeks flushing with embarrassment.

"To tell me he's sorry he didn't hear about my arrest until after the fact and that if he'd known he would have been there to try and get me out. He also said he's disappointed in my lack of house pride this year."

"What did you say to that?" Harry asked, knowing that sometimes they had to wheedle information out of Draco. He wasn't fond of sharing things about himself.

"I told him my girlfriend was much more important to me than some stupid school house."

Harry and Ron exchanged a look, imagining what Snape's face would have looked like upon hearing his once favourite student say something like that.

"I'm sure he was thrilled about that," Ron said, causing Draco to shrug.

Hermione came rushing up to them at that moment, her eyes alight with happiness and her cheeks flushed. Harry grinned as Draco sat up a little straighter, his eyes softening as he watched Hermione approach. Dumbledore was coming up behind Hermione and he stopped close to their table.

"Miss. Granger has brought it to my attention that some of the professors are making it a little difficult for you four to be together, which is understandable in a normal situation. This, however, is not a normal situation, but I'll let Miss. Granger explain everything to you. Have a good night and remember what I said about being secure at all times."

"What was that about?" Ron asked as Dumbledore walked away, a confused look on his face.

Hermione squealed, some of her old excitement back, which caught the men slightly off guard.

"Pack your things, boys, because we're moving!"

"Moving?"

"I'll explain more when we're alone," she said under her breath, indicating with her eyes that there were people watching their exchange. "Follow me!"

They got to their feet and followed an excited Hermione from the library and down a few corridors, ending at a portrait of a large field of flowers. Hermione said the password and bounded inside, the men following her in confusion.

"This is our new living quarters," she said, grinning from ear to ear. "I told Dumbledore that in order for our plan to work we need to have easy access to each other. How was Draco supposed to accompany me places that you two couldn't, like the loo, if he was on the other end of the castle? It wouldn't have worked! This dorm is usually for the Head Boy and Head Girl if they're from different houses, but since they're both Ravenclaw students this year they didn't need to use it. There were originally only two bedrooms, but Dumbledore did some rearranging so that we would each get our own sleeping areas. The common room is large enough for the four of us and we even have our own bathroom!"

Hermione turned to the boys and saw that they all looked impressed, and then she turned to her boyfriend.

"I was thinking of changing things around again so that you and I would be able to share a room. I think joining two of the existing rooms into one should be fairly easy and I don't really want to sleep in different rooms if we don't have to."

Draco's cheeks reddened slightly and he glanced at Harry and Ron quickly before turning back to Hermione. "Wouldn't it be a little weird for Harry and Ron?"

"Draco, we've been dating for over two years… we share a room at Grimmauld place. They know we have a sexual relationship."

Draco shrugged and went to look at the rest of the dorm and when he came back he pulled Hermione into his arms and dropped a soft kiss on her lips.

"You're brilliant," he said, in awe that she'd managed to land them a shared room for the rest of the school year. Harry and Ron agreed enthusiastically and did their own exploration of the rooms. Once they got back, they all agreed to go back to their old rooms to pack their things and meet back in their new common room as soon as possible.

"She won't be out of our sight," Harry assured Draco as they split up.

/

Hermione continuously felt that she was being watched during their first week back to school. It didn't seem to matter where she went or what she was doing, and it wasn't because Draco followed her everywhere. She knew he was there but she was always getting goosebumps and the hair on the back of her neck would stand straight up.

"I think something is going to happen this weekend," she said to Draco while they were in bed on the Thursday night. "I feel like I'm being watched everywhere I go, and it's unsettling. Every day it's like it becomes a little more menacing and I can feel it coming on."

"I hope it does," Draco admitted. "If it doesn't happen before this weekend then it'll be out of our hands."

"I know you want to catch whoever it is."

"Of course I do. They already attacked you once, got me arrested and sent to that barbaric prison…" Draco shuddered and Hermione had to stop herself from asking what happened there. She really didn't want to know. Then she'd be imagining him in that situation and she did everything she could to pretend that he hadn't spent any time in Azkaban whatsoever.

"And Ron, it's so important to Ron," Hermione said instead of asking him about his prison time. "He lost his sister, Harry lost his girlfriend… but I honestly do feel like it's going to happen this weekend, so make sure you guys stay with me. I think I'm going to purposely wander into areas that are secluded so it'll be easier."

"Well now, are you positive you don't have the Inner Eye?" Draco teased, gently poking her side. He wanted to ease her nerves, but although she chuckled, he could tell she was still quite worried. He wrapped his arm around her and murmured, "I hate that you have to put yourself out there. I know I suggested it because I couldn't think of any other way for it to go down, but if you get hurt…"

"I'm not going to get hurt, Draco. You'll be there and so will the guys, and as long as I can see I think I probably stand a good chance at catching her as well."

"Still think it's a woman?"

"Yeah. I can't explain why in any logical way but I just feel like it is."

"I agree with you," Draco said, turning onto his side and pressing his face into Hermione's hair. She sometimes wished he'd show her affection in front of everyone else, especially Harry and Ron, but knew that it just wasn't the way he did things.

"Anywhere you think I should go and get attacked?" Hermione asked, trying to keep her voice light.

"Honestly? I think the only place it'll happen again is in the bathroom because it's the one place you're guaranteed to be alone."

"I am not getting naked in front of Harry and Ron," Hermione said indignantly, causing Draco to huff out a laugh.

"I didn't say you had to get naked, Hermione, but I think you can fake it enough to make it look like you're having a bath even if you aren't."

"I could use a lot of bubbles and keep my shoulders below the water," she said thoughtfully.

"Yeah, that would work. As soon as anyone enters we'll be on them right away. You won't be in any danger," Draco said, almost sounding like he was trying to convince himself more than he was her.

"I know that," she said, trying to suppress a yawn.

"Sleep," he said, leaning forward and dropping a kiss onto her forehead before pulling her head closer to his chest and cradling it. Hermione's breathing deepened as her arm slid around his waist and when Draco was pretty sure she was sleeping he whispered, "I love you."

"I love you too," she answered into his chest, a smile gracing her features as she drifted into sleep.

/

Saturday morning dawned and Hermione met the men in the common room, their plans already in place. Ron was holding the invisibility cloak in one hand as Hermione collected her things from the bathroom in their shared dorm so she could take them to the prefects' bathroom with her.

"Ready?" Draco asked, holding his wand in his hand and a small bag in the other. He'd made sure to bring his Hand of Glory in case the killer decided to use Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder again.

"You do the charm," Harry said. "You're way better at it than I am and I don't want to be the one to give us away."

Harry stood perfectly still as Draco rapped him on the head with his wand, a cool feeling rushing from the crown of his head down his body, rendering him invisible.

"If you're casting it on Harry why can't you cast it on me?" Ron asked, holding the invisibility cloak loosely in his left hand.

Draco grinned and rapped Ron on the head, harder than necessary, with his wand.

"Everything will be fine, Hermione, and hopefully by the end of the day this will be done and over with."

Hermione nodded and Draco cast the disillusionment charm on himself as well. They followed Hermione from their common room, down the many hallways and staircases that would take her to one of the private bathrooms, keeping their distance so they weren't too close, but close enough that harm wouldn't befall her.

Hermione opened the bathroom door and dropped her bathroom case, something that had been planned so the men could sneak into the room while she collected her soap and shampoo. Once she was sure they were in she stood up and followed, the hair on her neck prickling uncomfortably.

She closed the door behind herself and shed her outer robe before quickly getting into the tub, hoping she wasn't exposed for longer than a moment in the dim room. She was wearing a small tank top and shorts so she wouldn't be weighed down by the water in the tub, and she had previously slipped the spaghetti straps of the shirt of off her arms, trapping them underneath her armpits so if her shoulders accidentally came out of the water it wouldn't be obvious she was wearing clothes. Her wand was sitting on the edge of the tub where it would be easy enough for her to grab, she memorized the area in case the lights went out again.

She stood in the warm water, bubbles up to her chin, and waited.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

The bubbles were dispersing when the door finally opened, but whoever slipped in had also cast a disillusionment charm on themselves, so it wasn't clear who it was. They could hear footsteps crossing the room and Hermione dunked herself under the water. She kicked away from where she'd been standing when the murderer entered the room so that when she surfaced she'd be on the other side of the tub – the side where her wand was waiting.

A curse blew through the water and hit the floor of the tub, taking a large chunk out of the stone where Hermione had been standing and she shot toward the wall of the tub quickly, grabbing her wand as she spun on the spot and held it out threateningly.

"Who's there?!" she called, annoyed that the person who was responsible for the attacks was hiding like a coward. "I know you're there, so you might as well show yourself!"

Another spell shot toward her but she had moved immediately after speaking, so it went wide, hitting the wall a few feet away. Hermione had seen where the curse had come from and she shot a stunning spell rebounding back at her attacker, and seconds later she'd pulled herself from the tub and was standing beside the water.

Another spell ripped through the air toward her and again gave away the other person's location, and this time Harry shot a revealing spell, his quick reflexes helping him to hit the target dead on.

Hermione's gasp was reverberated by the still invisible Harry, Ron and Draco as McGonagall's disillusionment charm fell. Draco appeared after mere seconds, his wand hand lifting away from the crown of his head as his feet were already taking him to the spot he presumed Harry to be.

"Here!" Harry called, and Hermione could vaguely make out Draco's shirt being pulled on.

McGonagall turned toward Harry's voice and Hermione used the moment of confusion to her advantage and shot a ruthless stunner at her professor and head of house, hitting her directly in the chest and dropping her like a sack of flour.

"Me too," said Ron, and their disillusionment charms were lifted in a matter of seconds after Minerva McGonagall appeared in the bathroom.

"McGonagall?" Hermione asked, wild eyes turning to Draco in confusion.

"Get dressed," he told her, gesturing to her clothes while Harry bound their Head of House and levitated her to take her to Dumbledore's office. Ron draped the invisibility cloak over his teacher's body so the students wouldn't see them floating her down the hallways, and Draco collected her wand from where it had fallen. He straightened up and cast a silvery Patronus charm, instructing the panther to warn the headmaster of their impending arrival.

Once Hermione was dressed, they filed out of the bathroom and went directly to Dumbledore. "Cockroach clusters," Hermione said, and the gargoyle that guarded the office sprang to life and jumped out of the way, allowing them access to the staircase that would take them to Dumbledore's office.

"Enter," he called once Hermione had knocked, and they traipsed through the doorway and stopped in his office. Without saying a word Ron stepped forward and pulled the invisibility cloak from McGonagall's floating body, causing Professor Dumbledore to gasp in shock. He looked at Fawkes, saying, "you know what must be done." Fawkes disappeared in a plume of fire; the old man sighed and returned to the wing-backed chair behind his desk, sitting heavily.

"I'm assuming she attacked you again?" he asked after a few moments, which Hermione confirmed while they waited. "I told them to floo over. I've had the fireplace opened all week in case something like this happened and asked them to bring veritaserum with them."

As soon as Dumbledore finished speaking the Aurors began filing out of the fireplace, each one looking shocked that the head of Gryffindor House was bound in ropes and stupefied on the Headmaster's office floor.

"Have you brought the veritaserum?" Dumbledore asked immediately, rounding his desk and levitating McGonagall's body into an empty chair. He vanished the ropes and recast the spell, binding her to the chair before tipping her head back and carefully allowing three drops of the truth serum that an Auror had given him down her throat.

"Ennervate," he said, and the woman's eyes fluttered for a few seconds before she opened them completely. "It was you, Minerva?"

"What was?"

"You killed Horace, Sybill and Ginny Weasley, as well as attacked Hermione Granger on more than one occasion?"

"Yes, it was me," Minerva spat, sounding disgusted. "They should have died in the war but somehow gained themselves some more time. I was doing what was expected of me!"

"Expected of you?" Auror Taylor asked, moving closer but doing everything in his power to avoid looking at Hermione and Draco.

"By my master."

"Who is your master?" the auror asked, totally confused.

"Tom Riddle, of course," she answered, an insane smile breaking across her face. "He may have been killed but many of his sympathizers are still out there, running free and doing his bidding. I wanted to make sure that Harry Potter suffered and those who helped him were killed. I knew I couldn't go for Dumbledore or Snape so I went after the ones I knew for a fact I could kill."

"Tom Riddle? I don't understand...Minerva, explain yourself."

"You've always been so blind. I worried each time I made a mistake, but you missed every slip, every error."

"What mistakes?" Dumbledore's voice was calm but his eyes were flint-hard.

Professor McGonagall took a deep breath. "Do you remember the night Tom fell when Harry Potter was just a baby? I was at his aunt and uncle's house in my animagus form. I thought you had found me out, but you decided I had been waiting to meet you. I was under the impression that Hagrid was going to be dropping the infant off and figured I'd be able to trick him into giving me the boy. I questioned you about whether Tom had actually died. I tried to convince you not to leave the boy there. I tried to wait and take him away, but you watched until I was gone.

"I thought I was going to be caught in his first year at the school because I let that stupid Quirrell man – who was a host body for Tom – past my chess game without actually having to play, but somehow no one managed to piece together that even though Harry and his friends went through the game and left it in shambles and destroyed, it was intact _after_ Quirrel had already gone through. I prepared several excuses. No one noticed.

"I slipped over the years more than once and referred to Tom as 'The Dark Lord,' at least once in front of Harry Potter himself. A child as naturally curious and suspicious as he is, I worried he would suspect me. I fought to allow him onto the Gryffindor quidditch team, hoping to earn his trust. He could have died in an accident. I set Quirrell to jinx his broom. Severus was always taking the brunt of the blame, not that I'm sad about it – it helped me slip through the cracks for so many years."

"You called him the Dark Lord when I was thirteen," Harry said suddenly, his face white. "I remember because I noticed at the time and thought it was strange – you were taking away my Firebolt that Sirius had bought me. I had other things on my mind that night but I still noticed, I just didn't think you, of all people, would be capable of something like this."

McGonagall laughed, an eerie, high pitched sound that had the hairs on Hermione's arms standing on end.

"You were Voldemort's most faithful servant?!" Dumbledore gasped, turning to his colleague. "When Harry went to the graveyard in his fourth year Voldemort mentioned that his 'most faithful servant was at Hogwarts', and everyone assumed he meant Barty Crouch Jr."

"Yes, he was referring to me, not that imbecile impersonating Alastor Moody," McGonagall said, a wide smile on her face. "It was I who allowed the dementors to kiss him. I worried that his interrogation would implicate me. I stunned Fudge and let the dementors take his soul so he wouldn't be able to point any fingers at me, and I performed a mild memory charm on Fudge. I am surprised no one figured that one out."

"Why kill Slughorn, Trelawney and Ginny, though?" Ron asked, his face white with anger.

"Horace Slughorn was a fool. Tom was searching for him before Dumbledore managed to convince him to come back to the school to teach. I couldn't very well do away with him right then. I would have given myself away. Then Horace gave Potter a very important memory, a memory that had everything to with the downfall of the Dark Lord. He was responsible for the fall of my master and he needed to be taken care of. Sybill, the blithering drunk she was, only made two true prophecies in her entire life and one of them also directly caused the downfall of the Dark Lord. I went for Granger because I was trying to hurt Potter – if he was emotionally distraught he'd let his guard down and I would be able to kill him as well. Granger is too smart, though, too strong, so I had to go for someone who still held significance in Potter's life but would be easy enough to take out."

"You killed Ginny just to hurt me?" Harry asked, his fists clenching.

"Yes," McGonagall said lightly, her face splitting into another creepy grin.

"We're going to search you," one of the aurors informed her before moving forward and rummaging through her pockets. Hermione rolled her eyes at their conduct – shouldn't she have been searched immediately? She could tell Harry was thinking the same thing and was less than enthusiastic about the whole ordeal – he was questioning his desire to be an auror more and more every day.

The Auror pulled a box from McGonagall's pocket and looked her in question.

"What is this? It says Demon-in-a-Box," he said, shaking the package slightly.

"I was going to use that to kill Hermione Granger today, since my last attempt on her life didn't go so well. I bought it through mail order from Weasley Wizard Wheezes a few days ago, they're coming out with a new line of products that are a little bit darker than their usual, but they stopped production when the deaths began. Luckily, this was still available in the store because they never sold many."

"A Demon-in-a-Box, how incredibly cruel," Dumbledore said, turning sad eyes to his former colleague. "Make sure you don't knock off the lid," he added as the auror placed the box into an evidence bag.

"Why did you use all Weasley products?" Ron asked curiously, his eyes on the package that he knew was from his twin brothers' store.

"Those awful brothers of yours killed one of the only people who mattered to me. They needed to pay and I figured spending the rest of their lives in Azkaban was the way to do it."

"Who did they kill?"

"They killed my Roddy – he never loved Bella like he loved me. Never! He was going to divorce her after the war and we were going to be together, really together and not just whenever she was out of the house, but those little bastards took him from me!"

Everyone stood in silence, totally shocked that the Head of Gryffindor could be saying such things – talking about a love for a man who was insane by any standards, and how she was trying to frame two young men for murders they didn't commit just to avenge her dead lover.

"You'll be spending a lot of time in Azkaban, Minerva," an auror said, moving forward and unbinding her before snapping the magical cuffs over her wrists.

"I am not afraid, he'll come for me sooner or later," she said, her eyes shining.

"Who will come for you?"

"The Dark Lord, of course," she answered before being side along flooed away from the office.

Hermione shuddered.

"Barkers," Draco said, moving forward. "I have her wand here."

He held it out and Auror Taylor moved forward to take it before realizing that he was going to have to come into close contact with Draco after everything he'd put the boy through. He avoided eye contact and snatched the wand away, rushing for the fireplace and disappearing as quickly as possible.

"I'm so sorry," Dumbledore said once it was only him and the four students in the room. "I had no idea. The signs were there the entire time and I chose not to see them."

"No one would ever expect Minerva McGonagall to be a sympathizer of Voldemort," Hermione said nicely, trying to diffuse his guilt.

"They were in school together, you know, and were even prefects at the same time. I knew that they knew each other."

"You can know someone for years and still turn away from them, Sir," Draco said, gesturing to himself. He'd turned his back on almost everything and everyone he'd known almost his entire life. "Just because she knew them when she was a teenager doesn't mean you'd immediately suspect her of being a Death Eater."

"She did always wear long sleeves," Hermione realized aloud.

"I'm sorry that you've lost a sister and a friend because of my lack of knowledge about my own staff."

Harry gave a sad half smile before turning away and leaving the office, his friends on his heels.

/

 **Four Years Later**

"Hermione, seriously, we need to get a move on or we're going to be late for our own engagement party."

"I'm surprised you even want to go," she answered stepping out of their bedroom in a short cherry red dress that hugged her curves in all the right places. Narcissa was going to give her hell when she saw it – she'd always said that red dresses were for whores. Draco couldn't wait to see that argument.

"Obviously I want to go, it's our party."

"Did Harry tell you who his date is yet? I'm dying to know!"

"No but Ron told me that he and Luna got a sitter for Pandora, so they can stay out as late as they want."

"Good," Hermione huffed. "We haven't got to spend a great deal of time with them lately."

"I'm glad he's doing so well, you know?"

"Yeah, losing Ginny hit that family hard, but they're all healing and I think the fact that Luna was best friends with Ginny really helped to bring her and Ron even closer. They both lost someone incredibly important to them and helped each other heal."

"I'm looking forward to seeing the twins," Draco said. He'd gotten a little bit better at expressing himself and wasn't quite as reserved as he'd been when they were still in school, but he still didn't throw around expressions of gratitude and longing like so many other people did.

"It has been a while," Hermione agreed, taking his hand and leading him through their house toward the floo, so they could meet their friends at the posh restaurant Lucius and Narcissa had reserved for the night.

"I love you," Draco said, smiling down at her with soft eyes and a small smile that made her heart beat harder and her knees slightly weak – still.

"I love you, too," Hermione answered, pressing herself up on her toes so she could kiss him lovingly. Draco wrapped his arms tightly around Hermione before turning on the spot.

In the next instant they were gone.

 **A/N - This story was inspired by a blog I came across on Tumblr. It's called 'Harry Potter Fan Theories' and they posted a theory by Johnathan V. The theory was originally posted on a href="** **"** **.com** **/a and it completely focused on how McGonagall was a traitor, so if you're interested in reading his full theory you can find it at either of those places! I found it incredibly interesting and new that I would like to use it as a small story line at some point and this prompt claim was the perfect area to use it!**

 **I hope everyone has enjoyed this story and I'd just like to make a general shoutout to HP_Drizzle, all of it's fans, the admins, the authors who have participated and also the artists who have participated!**

 **I also want to take a moment to thank my beta, Nina, for all of the work she put into making this readable and enjoyable! She is the best. Also a big thank you to idreamofdraco for coding the story for me and being incredibly prompt! You both rock!**

 **Shannon xoxox**


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